Intervention
by 11makeawish11
Summary: A group of friends suspect Artemis is a victim of domestic abuse- how can she explain her injuries without giving away her position on the team? One shot.


AN: Still can't believe season 3 is actually happening! I do not own anything.

(Warning: mentions of domestic abuse)

"We need to talk."

Artemis turned around, slowly hanging her keys on the hook by the door. A group of five girls were seated in a semi-circle in the middle of _her_ living room.

"I didn't realize I was having a party."

A girl with long dark hair stood up slowly,

"This isn't a party it's an intervention."

Artemis snorted and shrugged off her backpack,

"An intervention? Guys, I swear I'm not doing drugs."

A plump girl with rosy cheeks crossed her arms,

"It's not about drugs. It's about your boyfriend."

Artemis froze in the act of pulling off her jacket,

"Wally?"

A redheaded girl with round glasses nodded,

"Artemis, we're worried about you."

Artemis stared at them, completely bemused,

"What? Why are you-"

A tan girl with hoop earrings jumped to her feet,

"The first time we met you your hand was all wrapped up in gauze- remember? You said you were making a salad and the knife slipped."

"It did," Artemis began, but was immediately cut off by an Asian girl with a nose ring,

"Then a few days later your arm was in a sling and you told us you slipped on your way down the stairs."

"Yeah," Artemis said automatically, "It was after that bad storm. The stairs were slippery from the-"

"At first we just thought you were really clumsy," The plump girl interjected, "but then you had those bruises on your neck. You said you were giving your niece a piggy back ride and she held on too tight," The girl glanced around the circle, "but none of us even knew you _had_ a niece."

"I do," Artemis said before anyone else could speak, "my sister and I don't really get -along so I don't see her much, but she's two years old and her name is-"

"A two year old who can turn your whole neck purple?" The tan girl said softly.

Artemis huffed impatiently,

"Look, I think I know what you're getting at, but you couldn't be more wrong-"

"Artemis, it's okay- we're your friends! We're here to help you," the girl with glasses said, "My mom works for a place that helps domestic violence victims, she can-"

"I am _not_ a victim!" Artemis shouted.

"Okay," said the girl with dark hair, holding her hands up in mock surrender, "okay… but what about when you had that huge gash on your face and you told us your dog scratched you while you were sleeping?"

Artemis ran a hand through her hair,

"Guys, I appreciate your concern, I really do- but I promise you, Wally had _nothing_ to do with all that stuff. Everything I told you was the truth, and if-"

"Artemis!"

Suddenly, the door burst open and Wally ran in with almost inhuman speed, a pink blanket wrapped in his arms,

"I was on my way back from Central and I found him on the side of a burger joint's parking lot, and he isn't moving, but I think he's still alive because I can see him breathing, and I need your help because I don't know what to do, so I brought him here, and I know you said no more pets, but I couldn't just _leave_ him there-" He looked up suddenly and saw the five other people in the room, "Oh. Hi. I didn't know we were having people over. I, uh, kinda emptied the fridge this morning."

"They're not staying," Artemis said, striding over to inspect the contents of the blanket.

She pulled back a corner and found a small, spotted kitten curled up inside it. His eyes were closed, but his tail twitched when Artemis stroked his head.

"We should bring him to Dick's. I'm sure Alfred will know how to help."

"Good thinking, babe," Wally said, and his eyes flickered to the band of girls huddled in the corner of the room, all eyeing him suspiciously.

"Er- it's just a kitten," he said, shifting the blanket so they could see its spotted ears.

When they didn't respond he glanced uneasily at Artemis,

"I guess I'll meet you outside?"

Artemis nodded, the corners of her lip twitching. When his back disappeared out the door she turned back to the group,

"Look, I know you all had my best interests at heart, but you've got it all wrong. Wally is the type of guy who will lose his mind over a sick kitten- he would never hurt me. All those things that happened were accidents, and he had nothing to do with them. If anything he tried to stop them from happening," Artemis smiled at the group of girls, "It was really nice of you all to come tonight. I'm not used to so many people looking out for me."

"We just wanted to make sure you were okay," the tan girl said.

"Yeah, that's all we wanted to do," the redhead affirmed.

"You're sure he's never done anything to you?" The plump girl asked slowly.

Artemis grinned,

"He's never done anything worse than give me a headache- and he does that just by talking."


End file.
